OWbN, UT, MES, HP Joint Statement

There have been a number of concerns brought forth involving statements made during the keynote address at The Grand Masquerade event in New Orleans last week. Additionally, the community response to these statements has provided an opportunity for us to focus upon problems that our gaming community as a whole is facing when it comes to participant safety.

The concerns and safety of our membership is incredibly important to us. As our organization grows and works to increase the health of our community, we must also acknowledge that many of our members are also members of other LARP organizations. While we have our own unique community, we are also an important piece of the larger Live-Action Role-Play gaming community.

On Tuesday night, leaders of The Hidden Parlor, Mind’s Eye Society, One World by Night and Underground Theater came together in an unprecedented meeting with By Night Studios to discuss these concerns. As a single community of gamers, we are bringing these concerns with one voice of solidarity to the leadership at White Wolf in the interest of garnering insight and moving forward toward a resolution.

To those who have voiced concerns – either about the content of the keynote or the safety of our overall community – we want to reassure you that these concerns have been heard and are not going unaddressed.

We will be requesting that White Wolf provide us with a timeline within which we can expect a response, and ask that everyone please be patient and civil as we await their reply.

The leaders of each of our clubs share the same goal in this matter: Make this the safest, most inclusive and greatest hobby that we possibly can. This is an opportunity to usher in a major, positive cultural shift in our communities, and Tuesday night’s meeting was the first step in this journey. However, we cannot make this journey alone. We must all undertake education, compassion, vigilance and responsibility. We will need you, our members and fellow White Wolf fans, to join with us and help make change happen.

The health of our communities can only grow from this opportunity for our organizations to work together, and we believe this will only strengthen our efforts to continue recognizing and addressing the concerns you bring to us.